Save Shabana FC from disintegration
By Editorial.Team, August 18, 2023The musical chairs at Shabana FC which has just been promoted to the Football Kenya Federation (FKF) Premier League from the National Super League (NSL) have resonated loud and clear to whoever cares to listen.
For starters, Shabana is one of the biggest clubs in the country in terms of fan base and it deserves the respect it deserves, especially given that it was the country’s emissary in the Africa Cup of Champions Clubs way back in 1988 when it was bundled out by Kabwe Warriors of Zambia in the first round.
The club was formed in 1980 by Kisii-based businessman Dogo Khan and won the division title in 2014 before it was promoted back to the second tier after winning the Zone B of the FKF Division One.
Just for the records, Shabana nearly collapsed in 2006 when a dispute over its relegation from the Kenyan Premier League came to the fore.
Tore Bobe, as the team is fondly known, was set to play in Nationwide League, the second-level tier league in the country, but refused to participate insisting they belong to the Premier League.
The team regrouped, eventually returning to league football.
That’s not the topic but rather the agonising turf wars that border on politics and which have bedevilled the team ever since it was readmitted to the top-tier league after a 17-year of limbo.
While Shabana’s return to the top tier league is certainly something to celebrate, the power struggles are increasingly tainting the image of this club with several personalities giving what appears senseless disclaimers of what they purportedly said was in its interests.
There is certainly reason for Shabana diehards to frown given the jostling of the club’s power by Kenya Kwanza and Azimio party leaders both of who are seemingly riding on the club’s success for their own selfish ends.
Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu seemingly meant well when he alluded that the government will seek sponsors in every nook and cranny to ensure that Shabana is financially secure. The leaders should put aside their difference and combine their efforts to make the club great again. If they allow politics to creep into the club, it’s obvious they will always be pulling in different directions and it will definitely affect the performance of the team that is arguably the third biggest in the country in terms of fan base.